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Reply With QuoteI think you will find they have done it off their own back.
Went there today looking for something and noticed some big changes on their merchant pages, example one here.
Before they had a "click to reveal all vouchers", then a big space to hide everything else below the fold and trick people into clicking. That has now been removed completely and they are not aggressively promoting a "click to reveal all" to drop a cookie.
So have merchants forced them into this? I can't see them having done this off their own backs.
I think you will find they have done it off their own back.
I think mvc are only showing this for for their expired codes. For their new codes, the code is not shown until you click view code and open site.
I personally prefer the code to be visible to the consumer or something like this: Latest Discount Codes | Slash Prices where when you hover the code is visible but still allows for the click to be tracked as difficult to copy, but maybe a little less annoying.
I think its all or nothing - either force them to click to see it, or don't. There is no point in taking a half way approach of seeing it, but making it hard to copy without accidently opening it.
On a related topic, is this allowed?
HMV Money Off Voucher Codes, HMV Money Off Vouchers, HMV Voucher Codes, HMV Save Money Online
In bold, blue text they have "View ALL Onsite HMV Deals Here", clicking it does nothing other than go to HMV via an affil link. Then in a box further down, but in normal text and italics, they have "Sorry we don't have any HMV voucher codes today."
If they don't have any voucher codes, they shouldn't be allowed to use an affil link in that way, surely?
No - but it has been proved time and time again that it doesn't matter what other affiliates think. What's good for the networks is good for the networks - end of story.Originally Posted by JohnnyCash
I think this on going saga just proves that networks and merchants don't really give a ****, as long as the dots add up to looking like traffic is being sent to them through VC sites..
The so called guidelines are a farce and VC sites will continue to wait by the POS to steal affiliate generated traffic by dropping the last cookie .. the people that work for the merchants want to show them a graph that nicely says, "see I'm doing my job and bringing traffic" even if in the end it will damage you and your brand, we'll hide that for now.
The only way it is likely to stop is if ever other affiliate refuses to promote any merchant that also deals with VC sites, that would make them re-think, are you prepared to do that ?
Everything within AM to some extent is a farce, it's all do do with revenue (who cares where it's from as long as it's from an interweb site). The last couple of offices I went into (side job) had a screen that updated profits that day. As long as the merchant is happy, so is the network - thats how they make money. TBH most traditional agencies think AM is a "gift from the Gods" atm as they have just understood it within the last year.... FWits.
You don't have to go that far - stop promoting merchants who give exclusives to vc sites and to those who have a slack or purposefully tolerant policy to abuse.
Being someone who has a large vc type site I know that the networks do care as we meet with them almost weekly and if we do something wrong they tell us.
But the reason we meet with them mainly is not to be told what we do is wrong but due to the huge incremental business that the vc sites can send. I know that the good converting traffic is for the words merchant vc and merchat dc, which a year ago I thought was the only traffic that made sales. Well a year on and the surprise is how many sales we send that don't come from google with the words vouchers or codes in. Now we may be unusual but I would reckon over 90% of all our sales are completely incremental.
On a side note the merchants will never come away form the vc/dc type sites as the traffic for discount shopping is now huge and many sites including ours have a loyal following, who we can influence their buying pattern. So people can whinge and whinge but the vc/dc sites are here to stay as the punter wants them.
Doug
Do it without exclusive codes and cookie stuffing then? Or is this just another numpty who doesn't get it?
We get exclusive codes because we go and do deals to get them....if you want them go and get them. Yes that gives us an edge but it is open to everyone, but if people can't be bothered then don't whine.
We drop cookies the same as every other affilaite does.
Plus with now close to 2 million emails per week going out about deals on our site that is a huge incremental increase in sales to any merchant.
Doug
So you can't can you?
Put your money where your mouth is or change the record.
You are saying that 90% of your sales are incremental. I take that to mean that they wouldn't have happened without your intervention.
Bearing in mind how many code sites there are how on any planet can you be doing this?
I know the propaganda is a legacy of New Labour - in other words say it often enough and enough suckers will swallow it. So maybe we're in the land of New Labour economics too - nothing has to make sense as long as someone's getting something out of it?
Just run a week without the stuff that annoys everyone and then see what you think?
I see our log files you don't. I know exactly where our traffic comes from...I also see the huge rise in sales in 24 hours when we push a merchant by certian placement on the site, newsletter, facebook etc...we have had merchants do 100's if not 1000's of sales and as soon as we move them from those slots the sales drop and goto who ever we replaced that slot with.
As for whining affiliates on here, lets be honest no one cares if you don't drive volume. If you can drive volume then everyone will listen, hence why the industry is being formed by the people who drive volume...like it or lump it. Even though I have disagreed with Mark and MVC over many things they do drive a huge amount of incremental volume to a merchant. Read the latest vodafone report and you will see what happens from each channel of affiliate.
Anyway I get bored of the same people on here whining, if it is an issue go and see the merchants, networks, agencies, IAB and explain it. It is what we do everyday of the week....if you can't be bothered then live with it.
Night
Doug
You were the one spinning the party line.
The original question concerned dubious cookie dropping activity and why it is still being tolerated. You answered it in usual style - ie: we are saving the world rhetoric and have re-invented the laws of physics - again.
If you are bored go and do something different. I agree it must be tedious trying to emulate the great Mark.
I think if you check back over this thread many people had slagged off voucher sites and their implemetation, well before I said anything and of everyone in the discussion I think I am the only one who access to any facts.
If you want to whine about it then go to the meeting where the issues are discussed.
At the beginning of all of these discussions over a year ago I believed the same as everyone who whines about vc sites and cookie stuffing at the checkout.......ok that is some volume, but having seen our log files and sales, seen vodafones report and talked to some smart guys at networks who look at the data, all of the facts point to vc sites can add serious volume to any merchant. As affiliates you can believe the facts or not, but the reason nothing changes is simply because the people with the facts at the merchants/networks know what is happening.
Regarding click to reveal.........who cares? There are loads of sites out there saying click here for more info and cookie dropping.
Anyway unless you lot go to the meetings you will change nothing.
Doug
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